All stories by Kerry Hishon on BroadwayStars

Saturday, May 18, 2019

Tips for Creating a Positive Digital Footprint by Kerry Hishon

A “digital footprint” is the information about a particular person or company that exists on the Internet as a result of their online activity. This goes hand-in-hand with the concept of…

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, May 11, 2019

Quiz: Are You a Good Digital Citizen? by Kerry Hishon

In our last blog post, we talked about what digital citizenship in the drama classroom is. Teachers, let’s now take a look at your own digital citizenship skills and knowledge with this qu…

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, May 4, 2019

What Is Digital Citizenship for the Drama Classroom? by Kerry Hishon

Digital citizenship is all about the confident, positive, and safe use of digital technology both within and outside of the classroom for communication, collaboration, education, and enterta…

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, April 27, 2019

Taking Away the Script: A Game by Kerry Hishon

It’s easy for students to get hyper-focused on their lines when they’re working on a scene or on a show – counting how many lines they have, memorizing the lines, knowing what order th…

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, April 20, 2019

Exercise: Student-Led Warm-Up Games by Kerry Hishon

Student-led warm-up games are a great way for students to demonstrate what they’ve learned in drama class and apply it in a practical setting, as well as to develop their leadership skills…

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, April 13, 2019

Communicating Rehearsal Notes in Three Different Ways by Kerry Hishon

After every run-through of a show, directors will have a notebook or word document packed to the brim with notes – praise, corrections, problems, solutions, changes and adjustments that ne…

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, April 6, 2019

Communicating Your Directing Vision Through the Senses by Kerry Hishon

So you’ve selected the show you are producing this year and you have come up with an incredible vision for the show. This is going to be awesome! Obviously, you want your students to share…

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, March 30, 2019

“I’ll Just Do It Myself…” Encouraging Students to Work Together by Kerry Hishon

Encouraging students to work together is often a challenge. Some students worry that they’ll be saddled with peers who won’t pull their weight. Some students are super-shy and the idea o…

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, March 23, 2019

Inclusion in the Drama Classroom: Assessing Your Space by Kerry Hishon

In education, inclusion refers to students with disabilities or special needs (whether their needs are medical, mental, physical, or psychological) spending most or all of their class time w…

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, March 16, 2019

Onstage “Awareness” Improv Game: Sit, Stand, Kneel by Kerry Hishon

Being aware of your surroundings is a vital part of being an actor. Students must know what’s going on around them at all times. This is important from a theatrical standpoint – unless o…

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, March 9, 2019

Brainstorming as a Group: Add Three by Kerry Hishon

Here is a brainstorming exercise that you can use with your students when they have selected a broad topic and are trying to narrow it down or flesh out their ideas. For example, they may ha…

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, March 2, 2019

Pros and Cons: Assigned Groups vs. Class-Chosen Groups by Kerry Hishon

Group work is an enormous part of drama class. Students are always working in groups, whether for warm-ups, improvisation, scene work, playwriting, working backstage, and more. Even if your …

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, February 23, 2019

Classroom Activity: Question of the Day by Kerry Hishon

Starting your drama class with a Question of the Day is a great way to get your students into the “drama class” mindset. It’s a way to help create a routine for your students – they …

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, February 16, 2019

Questioning Your Character (Without Judgment) by Kerry Hishon

Students will frequently be cast into roles that are vastly different from their real-life personalities. This is a good thing – it’s a great opportunity for students to grow their skill…

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, February 9, 2019

Script Analysis for Directors, Part 2: Going Deeper by Kerry Hishon

In Script Analysis for Directors, Part 1: Scanning the Script, we started our pre-rehearsal planning process with a simple scan of the script to get our early thoughts and ideas out on pape…

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, February 2, 2019

Script Analysis for Directors, Part 1: Scanning the Script by Kerry Hishon

When I’m doing my pre-rehearsal preparations for a new show I’m directing, the first thing I do is an initial scan of the script. This is a useful way to start getting your primary thou…

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, January 26, 2019

What’s The Worst That Could Happen? by Kerry Hishon

This improv game is inspired by The “What If” Game but takes it to a bigger, more ridiculous scale. This version of the game combines brainstorming, improvisation, risk-taking, thinking …

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, January 19, 2019

Using Improv to Address Fear of Failure by Kerry Hishon

Fear of failure is a huge concern in drama class. Nobody wants to fail – it’s not a good feeling, and students are hyper-aware of not only their own feelings, but their perceptions of wh…

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, January 12, 2019

How Do We Encourage Confidence in Students? by Kerry Hishon

Students nowadays are more connected, aware, and tech-savvy than ever before. Yet, with all that connection and knowledge, students are hyper-aware of their insecurities, their desires not o…

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, January 5, 2019

Brainstorming in the Drama Class: Coming up With More Ideas Than You Need by Kerry Hishon

The title of this post is a bit of a misnomer because, truthfully, you can never have enough ideas! While you may not need every idea you’ve ever had at this very moment, the ideas you com…

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, December 29, 2018

Round-Up: Your Costume & Prop Challenges! by Kerry Hishon

We reached out to you, our amazing community, through social media to ask, What are your biggest props/costume challenges for your productions or upcoming show?.Turns out, there are lots of …

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, December 22, 2018

Safety First: Creating a Safe Rehearsal Space by Kerry Hishon

In the drama classroom and rehearsal space, drama teachers work with students to express themselves in a variety of ways. We encourage our students to push their boundaries, to explore new t…

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, December 15, 2018

Dealing With Theatrical Burnout: 4 Tips for Teachers by Kerry Hishon

As theatre educators and do-it-all directors, we frequently feel the tell-tale signs of burnout. There is so much that must be done – lesson planning and preparation, marking, staff meetin…

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, December 8, 2018

Creating and Maintaining an Organized Props Area by Kerry Hishon

The backstage area can be chaotic enough without having to worry about all the props for the show. Help to reduce backstage stress by using these seven tips to help keep your props area neat…

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, December 1, 2018

How to Create a Master Props List by Kerry Hishon

Having a master props list makes everyone’s life easier when it comes to knowing exactly what props are needed for your show, how each item is being acquired, and if a certain prop actuall…

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, November 24, 2018

Tips for First-Time Lighting Designers by Kerry Hishon

Full disclosure – lighting design is NOT my forte. I am in awe of those wonderful people with skills in creating atmosphere with just the right shade of lighting gel, an artfully angled in…

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, November 17, 2018

Best Practices for Training Your Technicians by Kerry Hishon

Lights, sound, special effects – these are the cherries on top of the sundae of your already amazing production. And for each fabulous effect that you add to your show, you’ll need an eq…

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, November 10, 2018

Pros and Cons of Live Bands versus Backing Tracks by Kerry Hishon

When working on a musical with your students, you will need to decide whether you will use a live band or backing (karaoke) tracks for the music. Whether you use a live band or backing track…

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, November 3, 2018

To Mic or Not to Mic? by Kerry Hishon

That is the question…and it is yet another decision you must make while producing your upcoming school show. Yes, your students are making smart character choices and acting their hearts o…

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, October 27, 2018

How to Prepare a Stage Manager’s Prompt Book by Kerry Hishon

One of the stage manager’s most important tasks is to create and maintain the prompt book – sometimes known as the “show bible” – which is a master copy of the script and contains …

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM
Saturday, October 20, 2018

So, What Does an Assistant Stage Manager Do, Anyway? by Kerry Hishon

As we all know, the role of the stage manager is a large and challenging one. And, while the stage manager is an amazing person, it’s always useful to have help. Enter the assistant stage …

SOURCE: Theatrefolk at 01:00AM

All that Chat

2024-2025 BROADWAY SEASON
Jun 05, 2024: Home - Todd Haimes Theatre
Jul 11, 2024: Oh, Mary! - Lyceum Theatre
Jul 30, 2024: Job - Hayes Theater
Sep 12, 2024: The Roommate - Booth Theatre
Nov 14, 2024: Tammy Faye - Palace Theatre
Dec 12, 2024: Cult of Love - Hayes Theater
Dec 19, 2024: Gypsy - Majestic Theatre
Mar 17, 2025: Purpose - Hayes Theater
Apr 10, 2025: Smash - Imperial Theatre
TBA: Titanic
TBA: Ragtime